Global private equity fund (PEF) Carlyle Group will sell a 1.2 percent stake in KB Financial Group in a block deal worth about 32 billion won.According to sources in the investment banking (IB) industry on Feb. 14, Carlyle Group made a demand forecast after the close of the market to push forward th
HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE), a shipbuilding holding company of HD Hyundai, recently announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Woodside Energy, Australia’s largest energy company; Hyundai Glovis; and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), a Japanese global shipping c
Global electric vehicle registrations, excluding those in China, crossed 5.5 million units in 2023, marking a growth rate of 30 percent. Hyundai and Kia also fared well, ranking fourth in global deliveries.About 5,648,000 electric vehicles were registered globally in 2023, excluding those China, up
LS Eco Advanced Materials, a subsidiary of LS Cable & System, announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the German-based Vacuumschmelze, the largest permanent magnet manufacturer in Europe, to establish a joint venture corporation.The two companies plan to establish the j
SK Chemicals announced on Feb. 14 that it has decided not to proceed with the sale of its pharmaceutical business.Last year, the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the sale of its pharmaceutical business and had been in discussions regarding the matter.It explained, “Amid various
Executives and experts from domestic e-commerce companies such as Coupang are collaborating to develop strategies in response to the aggressive expansion efforts of Chinese e-commerce platforms including AliExpress and Temu.According to industry sources on Feb. 14, the Ministry of Trade, Industry an
The Korea Development Institute (KDI) has maintained its economic growth forecast for South Korea at 2.2 percent for this year. However, it has slightly lowered its forecast for private consumption, citing prolonged high interest rates as a contributing factor.According to the “Economic Outlook” rel
News about BYD’s entry into South Korea has drawn attention to changes in the share of the South Korean electric vehicle market dominated by Hyundai Motor. BYD is a Chinese electric vehicle maker. Experts predict that BYD’s price competitiveness will play a big role in determining its success in the
Korean shipbuilders lagged behind Chinese shipbuilders to take second place in global ship orders in January.Global ship orders totaled 2.57 million CGT (96 ships) in January, down 26 percent year on year, according to Clarkson Research, a U.K.-based shipbuilding and shipping market research firm. O
Butechnology's successful patent application and registration for aircraft maintenance have raised expectations for its entry into the civilian aviation maintenance sector.On the 14th, KOSDAQ-listed company Butechnology (CEO Jin Yeop Lee) announced that it has obtained a patent for augmented reality
The number of employment insurance holders rebounded for the first time in seven months in January. However, one third or more of the increase was among foreign workers.The figure also shrank in the manufacturing industry with the exclusion of foreigners. It had been on the wane for four months sinc
Pulmuone announced on the 14th that it has been recognized for sustainability in the 2023 Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA), conducted by S&P Global, one of the world's three major credit rating agencies, and has entered the global Top 5 for the first time in the food sector.This ranking pla
The competition in the foldable phone market is expected to intensify this year. Amid predictions that Chinese companies, including Huawei, are set to release a “tri-fold phone” that can fold both inwards and outwards twice, Samsung, a leader in the foldable phone market, is anticipated to unveil it
APR, scheduled for a listing by the end of this month, held a press briefing on Feb. 13 to disclose its future business vision and strategy post-IPO.At the event, APR CEO Kim Byung-hoon expressed his ambition to grow APR into the world’s leading beauty tech company, spearheaded by Medicube. He belie
Qoo10 announced on Feb. 13 that it has signed a comprehensive business transfer agreement to acquire Wish, a global service operated by ContextLogic, a company listed on the NASDAQ in the United States.Through this acquisition, Qoo10 aims to expand its global logistics network beyond the Asia region
Samsung Biologics announced on Feb. 13 that it has been awarded the Leadership A- grade in the climate change response category by global sustainability evaluation organization Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). CDP, a non-profit international organization founded in the U.K. in 2000, conducts project
The global electric vehicle battery market, excluding China, has continued its strong growth trend, reaching close to 40 percent growth last year. While the battery usage by the three major K-battery companies increased significantly, their market share saw a slight decline.According to SNE Research
It has been revealed that the National Pension Service (NPS) achieved a return on investment of over 40 percent through its investments in U.S. stocks last year. This is attributed to the historical bull market recorded in the U.S. stock market.According to the stockholding report (13F) submitted by
The author is an analyst for Shinhan Securities. He can be reached at sokang@shinhan.com -- Ed.4Q23 review: New game and profitability disappointNCsoft registered operating profit of KRW3.9bn (-91.9% YoY, -76.7% QoQ, operating margin of 0.9%) on sales of KRW437.7bn (-20.1% YoY, +3.5% QoQ) for 4Q23,
Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp. are looking to ramp up their market shares by introducing more than five new electric vehicle models this year. The electric vehicle market, which grew rapidly, has slowed down somewhat, but the two automakers are expediting their electrification transition with the new m